30th December 2013 Havana, Cuba
In July 2011 in a ‘Declaration on Bilateral Co-operation’ the British and Cuban governments agreed that human rights are a ‘priority for co-operation’. Both countries have recently been elected by the UN General Assembly to the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) for a three year term beginning on 1 January 2014. The HRC is the […]
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16th December 2013 Havana, Cuba
Me sentí muy honrado al ser invitado en representación de Europa, a intervenir en el homenaje del gobierno cubano a Nelson Mandela que tuvo lugar el 11 de diciembre. A continuación les adjunto la versión completa de mi discurso. En febrero de 1990 después de veinte y siete largos años de cárcel, Nelson Mandela fue […]
16th December 2013 Havana, Cuba
I’m very grateful to Aimée Gonzalez for this excellent guest blog. Aimée is Cuban and currently studying at the London School of Economics (the LSE) in the UK under the Chevening scholarship scheme. Two months have already passed by… and I’m still dazzled and struggling to keep pace with the vigorous current of London’s life. Instead […]
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14th December 2013 Havana, Cuba
The Sauto Theatre in Matanzas is apparently one of only three theatres in the world which can be transformed into a dancehall with the turn of a crank. Normally the audience sits below the stage but when the chairs are removed and the floor is raised, the stage and auditorium become one large space for dancing salsa or the danzón. Unfortunately not many visitors can see […]
2nd December 2013 Havana, Cuba
As I travel around Cuba talking to people about the United Kingdom, I am constantly surprised by how little many Cubans really know about my country. This blog is an attempt to put that right. Here are nine things you probably don’t know about the UK: 1. There is free education in the UK. The large […]
12th November 2013 Havana, Cuba
This week’s blog is a guest blog written by my colleague Rhys Patrick, Second Secretary, Political and Public Affairs. Organised crime and terrorism are two of the world’s biggest security challenges. They can affect anyone at anytime, from people forced into human trafficking to those caught up in terrorist attacks. And they spawn other illicit activities […]
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31st October 2013 Havana, Cuba
Al igual que Cuba, el Reino Unido tuvo que lidiar recientemente con algunos problemas económicos severos. En el 2008-2009, en medio de la crisis financiera y económica global, la economía británica se redujo en 7.2 %. La crisis dejó al modelo del Reino Unido expuesto a un crecimiento económico inestable y desbalanceado. El rango de […]
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25th October 2013 Havana, Cuba
This week marks the one year anniversary since Hurricane Sandy swept through eastern Cuba, destroying homes and crops, damaging schools and health clinics, leaving eleven people dead and thousands of people homeless. In the early hours of October 25th the hurricane swept over Santiago de Cuba, Guantanamo and Holguin before continuing northwards and towards New York. […]
19th September 2013 Havana, Cuba
Thankfully not all of the 150,000 Brits who come to Cuba each year on holiday write to me asking for advice on where to go fishing. Earlier this summer, I received the following letter: ‘Dear Ambassador I am eagerly anticipating a visit to your adopted country from the 22nd June in company with four friends. We […]
10th September 2013 Havana, Cuba
This month Aimée Gonzalez, a Cuban development worker, will travel to London to start her studies in local development. Aimée is a Chevening scholar and I’m really pleased that the British government will be paying for her to study a Masters degree at the London School of Economics (LSE). Every year all over the world […]